An Indian court has ordered the owners of an Indonesian cargo ship, anchored at Paradip port since December after a 22 kg cocaine seizure, to pay a ₹100 crore (approximately $12.1 million) bond and ₹10 crore bank guarantee for its release, reported local media.

The MV Debi, arriving from Indonesia on November 29th, raised suspicion due to intelligence reports. Customs officers searched the ship on November 30th-December 1st, recovering 22 magnet-wrapped packets from its cranes.

The seized cocaine, estimated at ₹220 crore, reportedly originated from Panama. Ten individuals, including Vietnamese crew members, Paradip port crane operators, and a stevedoring agency employee, are under investigation.

The Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act court in Kujang, Jagatsinghpur district, ordered the release of the MV Debi upon payment of the aforementioned bond and guarantee.

Paradip is one of the Major Ports of India, and an autonomous body under the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963 functioning under Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways is administered by a Board of Trustees set up by the Government of India headed by the Chairman, PPT.